simplest way is to buy heavy cream and add a touch of Flora Danica and let sit at room temp for 12 hours or so. Won't last as long as store bought tho...and for the cost, not horribly cost effective. You may be able to innoculate cream with purchased sour cream (if still active...not really sure about that).

simplest way is to buy heavy cream and add a touch of Flora Danica and let sit at room temp for 12 hours or so. Won't last as long as store bought tho...and for the cost, not horribly cost effective. You may be able to innoculate cream with purchased sour cream (if still active...not really sure about that).

I have used fresh store bought sour cream to make a mix at home for my breadmaking (sort of like a sourdough imitation). I add it to fullcream milk and leave it for 24 to 36 hours and it works fine.

Sometimes this is where things get a little fuzzy for me. Well at least the terminology. So if I want to make cultured butter...... I add Flora Danica (or even buttermilk) to my cream and let it sit at room temp for a day. And it gets thick (almost like sour cream!). So now my cultured cream is sour cream? But when I put it in the processor I get butter and buttermilk. So my sour cream can be churned into butter/buttermilk. And then there is creme fraiche.....Susan

Often it is in the fat percentage and culture selection that makes the difference (along with rennet amount, if any). The basic process is identical for creme fraiche, sour cream, cream cheese, and cultured butter.

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Often it is in the fat percentage and culture selection that makes the difference (along with rennet amount, if any). The basic process is identical for creme fraiche, sour cream, cream cheese, and cultured butter.

That's fun to learn. One of my first attempts at cheese making was a cream cheese that I could best describe as a cross between a cream cheese and sour cream--it was good on bagels and in taco soup.

Often it is in the fat percentage and culture selection that makes the difference (along with rennet amount, if any). The basic process is identical for creme fraiche, sour cream, cream cheese, and cultured butter.

That's fun to learn. One of my first attempts at cheese making was a cream cheese that I could best describe as a cross between a cream cheese and sour cream--it was good on bagels and in taco soup.

Real, fresh sour cream is just like that. The store bought has things added to it and deadened flavor to appeal to a wider market. We are so fortunate to be freed from all of that!